North Medford beats Melrose National in District 12 Tourney

Wednesday

Jul 9, 2014 at 10:59 PMJul 9, 2014 at 11:20 PM

By Christopher Hurleychurley@wickedlocal.com

Cole Brennan helped erase some bad memories with one swing of the bat, Wednesday night at Gillis Park.The All-Star shortstop drilled a two-run homer giving his team the early lead, as North Medford defeated Melrose National, 10-0, in the Loserís Bracket of the District 12 Tournament, July 9.With the win North Medford advances to face cross-town rivals Medford National, Thursday, July 10 at Columbus Park at 6 p.m."Getting by any round is a success" said North Medford Manager Anthony Pisa. "Itís all about moving on. Itís winning baseball, its part of what we like to try to teach, sportsmanship and competitiveness. These kids love to play the game."Fresh off a tough 8-7 loss to Everett, July 8, North Medford seemed bound and determined to battle its way back in the double-elimination tourney. They did just that posting five runs in the first frame. Brennanís two-run shot gave his team the early momentum. Joe Pisa also supplied plenty of pop lacing an RBI triple scoring Samuel McInerney. And when Matt Morin capped the surge blasting a solo homer, North Medford held a comfortable 5-0 cushion."That was huge," said Pisa. "It demoralizes your opponent early. Thatís what you have to do. From there, you get to play a small ball and make the defense work a little bit more when you get that cushion, keeping all the pressure on them immediately."The early deficit took its tool on Melrose National."Once (North Medford) got that five-run lead right out of the gate it kind of went downhill," Melrose National Coach Giovanni Aquino said. "They put their heads down. It almost seemed like they were out of it. And it was hard to get them back in it."North Medford maintained its pressure manufacturing two more runs in the second inning.Meanwhile, North Medford starter Tyler Encalada held a potent Melrose National lineup scorelss, scattering two hits in four innings of work. The crafty right-hander managed to strikeout the side in order in the second, fanning a total of five in the game.Despite having eight base runners over the final two innings, Melrose National was unable to cash in.North Medford continued to chip away, taking advantage of several defensive lapses. They added one run over the next three frame, before the game was ultimately called in the fifth due to the Mercy Rule."There were too many errors that were made and the kids just didnít hit the ball well," said Aquino, whose club finished 1-2 in the tourney. "That was it."According to Pisa, a bounce-back victory such as this can go a long way for a club, especially after squandering a 7-5 lead against Everett heading into the last inning the night before."That loss caused us to go to the Loserís Bracket, but the team looked at it as a couple more games we get to play," Pisa said. "They were pretty upbeat coming off that loss, and it showed tonight. They came out with no hangover and jumped on them in the first inning. Iím very impressed with the way they played offensively and defensively."The North Medford coach is pumped up about battling Medford National in the next round. Medford National defeated Churchill American 10-0 in its Loser Bracket game over at Columbus Park."Theyíre a quality ball club," Pisa said. "I know most of the players. We play them all year long. We knew with three Medford teams weíre ultimately going to have to square off somewhere. Tomorrow is the night. Weíre looking forward to it."North MedfordDistrict 12 All-Stars#8 Cole Brennan#15 Tyler Encalada#13 Henry Howard#12 Samuel McInaerney# 9 Zackary Padillo# 3 Anthony Pisa# 7 Joseph Pisa# 2 Stephen Agrippino#10 Matt Morin# 6 Dante Giambusso# 4 Jacob Hayward# 1 John ScarpelliManager Anthony PisaMelrose NationalDistrict 12 All-Stars#22 Jason Lacortigla# 7 Henry MacDonnell#52 Devin Aquino# 5 Austin Figueira#10 Cole Lepler#11 Cam Gorman#99 Cirino Costa# 6 Zack Shine# 8 Hunter Adrian# 2 Joey ShieldsManager Bill MacDonnellCoach Giovanni Aquino